Thanks to mwh for putting this in broader context.
I recently posted a thread about a book on Latin textual criticism that goes into the issues mwh addresses, and might even be of interest to those who are interested in Greek texts, too:
http://discourse.textkit.com/t/richard-tarrants-new-book-on-textual-criticism/14252/6
“A senior colleague once told me he was glad our texts are full of corruption, because it gave classicists something to do. I thought that a deplorable attitude, and told him I’d be much happier if our texts had no corruptions at all. He merely huffed at that.”
I certainly agree with mwh, but the sad fact is that our texts are full of corruption, and it pays to be aware of this when reading any Latin or Greek text. Sometimes it’s not a big deal (as in the case of αφικνοιτο/αφικνειτο, where the meaning is absolutely clear whichever reading you like, but sometimes it can make a big difference in understanding a historical or literary text.